Image processing apparatus, control method and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium therefor

ABSTRACT

An image processing apparatus acquires a first image which captures a scene including an object from a first viewpoint position and a second image which captures a scene including the object from a second viewpoint position, and associates a coordinate position corresponding to a position of a feature of the object on the first image with a coordinate position corresponding to a position of a feature of the object on the second image. The image processing apparatus determines a partial region in the second image corresponding to a give region in the first image based on the association, generates a synthesized image by replacing an image of the given region using an image of the determined partial region, and superimposing variation data on the synthesized image.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of International Patent ApplicationNo. PCT/JP2018/041090, filed Nov. 6, 2018, which claims the benefit ofJapanese Patent Application No. 2017-248005, filed Dec. 25, 2017, andJapanese Patent Application No. 2018-192136, filed Oct. 10, 2018, eachof which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a technique of synthesizing capturedimages.

Background Art

Conventionally, when inspecting concrete wall surfaces of a bridge, adam, a tunnel, and the like, an inspection engineer approaches theconcrete wall surface and visually checks variations such as cracks.However, such inspection work called close visual inspection has aproblem that the operation cost is high. PTL 1 discloses a technique inwhich a concrete wall in a tunnel is captured using a camera, and cracksare detected based on the obtained captured image.

CITATION LIST

Patent Literature

PTL 1: Japanese Patent Laid Open No. 2002-310920

However, in the related art described above, when an obstacle existsbetween an inspection object such as a concrete wall surface and acamera that performs capturing, there is a problem that an image of aportion shielded by the obstacle cannot be obtained. Therefore, there isa possibility that a variation such as a crack on the concrete wallsurface of the portion may be overlooked.

The present invention has been made in consideration of such problems,and provides a technique of generating an image which enables moresuitable detection of variations in a situation in which an obstacleexists between an inspection object and a camera.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to solve the above-described problems, an image processingapparatus according to the present invention includes an arrangementdescribed below. That is, the image processing apparatus comprises:

-   -   one or more processors; and    -   one or more memories including instructions that, when executed        by the one or more processors, cause the communication apparatus        to perform a method comprising:    -   acquiring a first image which captures a scene including an        object from a first viewpoint position and a second image which        captures a scene including the object from a second viewpoint        position different from the first viewpoint position,    -   associating a coordinate position corresponding to a position of        a feature of the object on the first image with a coordinate        position corresponding to a position of a feature of the object        on the second image,    -   determining a partial region in the second image corresponding        to a give region in the first image based on the association,    -   generating a synthesized image by replacing an image of the        given region in the first image using an image of the determined        partial region, and    -   displaying variation data representing a variation that has        occurred in the object by superimposing the variation data on        the generated synthesized image.

Further features of the present invention will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included in and constitute a part of thespecification, illustrate embodiments of the present invention and,together with the description, serve to explain the principles of thepresent invention.

FIG. 1 is a view exemplarily showing how a floor slab looks whenobserved from below a bridge.

FIG. 2 is a view exemplarily showing images of the same floor slabregion captured from different viewpoint positions.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the functionalarrangement of an image processing apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware arrangementof the image processing apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the imageprocessing apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining generation of a synthesized image.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the imageprocessing apparatus.

FIG. 8 is a view exemplarily showing GUIs for accepting a designation ofa replacement region from a user.

FIG. 9 is a view exemplarily showing a GUI for accepting modification ofthe synthesized image from the user.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing an example of an environment inwhich the floor slab is captured.

FIG. 11 is a view exemplarily showing a screen after variation detectionis performed on a synthesized image.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the image processingapparatus upon performing variation detection on the synthesized image.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing an example of the functionalarrangement of the image processing apparatus.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the imageprocessing apparatus.

FIG. 15A is a view stepwisely showing processing of correcting apositional shift between a main image and a clipped image.

FIG. 15B is a view stepwisely showing the processing of correcting apositional shift between a main image and a clipped image.

FIG. 15C is a view stepwisely showing the processing of correcting apositional shift between a main image and a clipped image.

FIG. 15D is a view stepwisely showing the processing of correcting apositional shift between a main image and a clipped image.

FIG. 16A is a view showing an example of a method of blending a boundaryportion between a main image and a clipped image.

FIG. 16B is a view showing the example of the method of blending theboundary portion between the main image and the clipped image.

FIG. 16C is a view showing the example of the method of blending theboundary portion between the main image and the clipped image.

FIG. 16D is a view showing the example of the method of blending theboundary portion between the main image and the clipped image.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an example of embodiments of the present invention will beexplained in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Notethat the following embodiments are merely examples, and not intended tolimit the scope of the present invention.

(First Embodiment)

As the first embodiment of an image processing apparatus according tothe present invention, an image processing apparatus that synthesizestwo images obtained by capturing a floor slab of a bridge from twodifferent viewpoint positions will be described below as an example.

<Capturing of Floor Slab of Bridge>

FIG. 1 is a view exemplarily showing how a floor slab 100 looks whenobserved from below the bridge. Note that the floor slab is a structurefor transmitting the weight of a vehicle or the like passing over abridge to a bridge girder and bridge piers. Here, the concrete floorslab 100 is supported by a lattice-shaped steel bridge girder 110, anddiagonal members 120 are arranged on the side of the steel bridge girder110 not in contact with the floor slab 100. Therefore, when observedfrom below, the diagonal member 120 crosses the floor slab 100 in frontof the floor slab 100.

A camera captures a floor slab region surrounded by a lattice formed bythe steel bridge girder. In particular, for descriptive simplicity, itis assumed below that capturing is performed using the camera from aviewpoint position directly below the floor slab region surrounded byeach lattice. In addition, it is assumed that an image of an adjacentfloor slab region is captured together with the center floor slab regionin each captured image. Note that it is assumed here that imagecapturing is performed from different viewpoint positions by moving thecamera.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing an example of an environment inwhich the floor slab is captured. A variation 1001 is a variation suchas a crack appearing on the surface of the floor slab 100, and is anobject to be included in a captured image. A space 1002 indicated by agray rectangle is a space region in which the diagonal member 120 blocksthe field of view when a camera 1003 a installed at a viewpoint positionimmediately below the variation 1001 captures directly above. That is,the variation 1001 does not appear in the image captured by the camera1003 a. The camera 1003 a is used by being fixed to, for example, atripod or a camera platform, and is fixed at a height of about 1 m fromthe ground. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the camera 1003 a islocated 10 m below the floor slab 100. As shown in FIG. 10, when thefloor slab 100 and the diagonal member 120 are in a positionalrelationship of about 2 m apart, it only suffices to move the viewpointposition of capturing about 2.5 m in the horizontal direction to capturethe variation 1001. A camera 1003 b represents a state in which thecamera 1003 a is installed at a position moved about 2.5 m in thehorizontal direction. The camera 1003 b captures the floor slab at anangle (from an oblique direction) with respect to the floor slab, sothat the variation 1001 appears in the captured image. Note that it isassumed here that capturing is performed from different viewpointpositions by moving the camera, but capturing may be performed using aplurality of cameras.

Ranges 130 a and 130 b in FIG. 1 exemplarily show capturing ranges of ascene when captured from the viewpoint positions directly below floorslab regions 100 a and 100 b, respectively. As is understood from FIG.1, the floor slab regions 100 a and 100 b are included in both theranges 130 a and 130 b.

FIG. 2 is a view exemplarily showing images of the same floor slabregion 100 a captured from different viewpoint positions. An image 200 aexemplarily shows an image of the floor slab region 100 a when capturedfrom a viewpoint position directly below the floor slab region 100 a. Acrack 210 a appears in the image 200 a. On the other hand, an image 200b exemplarily shows an image of the floor slab region 100 a whencaptured from a viewpoint position directly below the floor slab region100 b. A crack 210 b appears in the image 200 b. As will be describedbelow, the crack 210 a and the crack 210 b are described as the crack210 because they actually show the same crack.

As is understood from FIGS. 1 and 2, the image 200 a corresponds to theimage of the floor slab region 100 a captured from the front, and theimage 200 b corresponds to the image of the floor slab region 100 acaptured diagonally from the left. Therefore, the positionalrelationship between the diagonal member 120 and the crack 210 isdifferent between the image 200 a and the image 200 b. In addition, thevertical steel bridge girder 110 differently appears in the image 200 aand the image 200 b.

That is, the floor slab region shielded by the diagonal member isdifferent between the image 200 a and the image 200 b due to theparallax, so that the crack 210 differently appears in these images.Therefore, in the first embodiment, an image of the floor slab region100 a with a small shielded region is generated by synthesizing theimage 200 a and the image 200 b. This makes it possible to obtain animage which enables more suitable detection of variations such as thecrack 210.

<Arrangement of Image Processing Apparatus>

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the functional arrangement of an imageprocessing apparatus 300. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the hardwarearrangement of the image processing apparatus 300. Here, an example isshown in which the image processing apparatus 300 is formed by a generalpersonal computer (PC).

In the following description, a mode will be described in which eachfunctional unit of the image processing apparatus 300 shown in FIG. 3 isimplemented by a CPU executing a software program. However, some or allof the functional units of the image processing apparatus 300 shown inFIG. 3 may be configured to be processed by hardware such as anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or an FPGA. Here, FPGA isan abbreviation for field programmable gate array.

A CPU 320 comprehensively controls the image processing apparatus 300.The CPU 320 implements each functional unit shown in FIG. 3 by executinga control program stored in, for example, a ROM 322 or a hard disk drive(HDD) 326.

The HDD 326 stores, for example, an application program used in theimage processing apparatus 300 or various types of control programs. TheHDD 326 also stores images captured by the camera as described above(for example, the captured image indicated by the ranges 130 a and 130b) and a design drawing to be described later. Further, the HDD 326 alsostores various types of information related to the application programor various types of control programs. A RAM 321 is also used totemporarily store the various types of information. Each of a keyboard325 and a mouse 324 is a functional unit that accepts an instructioninput from a user. A display 323 is a functional unit that visuallyprovides various types of information to the user.

An image data storage module 301 is formed by, for example, the HDD 326,an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a combination thereof. As describedabove, it stores images captured by the camera from a plurality ofviewpoint positions. In addition, it stores a design drawing, which isan orthographic projection view as viewed from below the bridge, createdbased on the design drawing or the like of the target bridge.

Note that in the following description, captured images indicated by theranges 130 a and 130 b are assumed as captured images, but each capturedimage may be a stitch-synthesis image of a plurality of captured images(one-shot captured images). That is, in order to perform precise crackdetection, it is necessary to capture the floor slab with a highresolution (for example, one pixel of the captured image corresponds to0.5 mm on the floor slab). At this time, when capturing is performedusing a camera having, for example, 24 million pixels (lateral 6000pixels×longitudinal 4000 pixels), one shot image includes the range oflateral 3 m×longitudinal 2 m, so the above-described captured-imagecondition (=including the image of an adjacent floor slab image) cannotbe satisfied. Therefore, it is preferable to synthetize a plurality ofone-shot images by stitch synthesis or the like to generate an imagethat satisfies the above-described captured-image condition.

An image data management module 302 manages image data stored in the HDD326 described above. For example, it manages the viewpoint position atwhich each of the plurality of captured images is captured. Also, itmanages association information between images derived by an alignmentmodule 303 to be described later.

The alignment module 303 is a functional unit that determinesassociation of position coordinates between two (or more) images. Forexample, two images are displayed on the display 323 as a graphical userinterface (GUI), and a designation of coordinates to be associated witheach other in the two images is accepted from the user via the keyboard325 and/or the mouse 324. Then, a coordinate conversion parameter forassociating the coordinates with each other between the images isderived. Here, it is assumed that a known homography matrix is derivedas the coordinate conversion parameter, but another coordinateconversion parameter may be calculated. Note that it is assumed herethat the floor slab region can be approximated by a two-dimensionalplane. It is also assumed that the portion of the steel girdersurrounding the floor slab region, the portion in contact with the floorslab, exists on substantially the same plane as the floor slab region.

In general, it is necessary to designate four pairs of coordinates toderive a homography matrix. However, more pairs of coordinates may bedesignated to derive a homography matrix. In that case, for example,processing of calculating the sum of errors each of which is obtained asa result of coordinate conversion of coordinate values of each pair ofcoordinates and optimizing the parameter so as to minimize the sum isperformed. In practice, the accuracy tends to improve as the number ofcoordinate pairs increases.

A replacement region designation module 304 is a functional unit thataccepts a region in a base image (referred to as a main imagehereinafter) of two images to be synthesized, the region in which thefloor slab is shielded so does not appear. That is, a region to bereplaced with the other image (referred to as a sub image hereinafter)of the two images to be synthesized is designated. For example, the mainimage is displayed as a GUI on the display 323, and a designation of theimage region of the diagonal member included in the main image isaccepted as a region of an arbitrary shape such as a polygon, a circle,or an ellipse from the user via the keyboard 325 and/or the mouse 324.Note that the replacement region may be designated not only as oneregion but also as a combination of two or more regions. In this case, alogical sum (OR) or a logical product (AND) for the combination isfurther designated.

Note that in processing of detecting a crack or the like, it isdesirable that the image is captured from a position directly facing thefloor slab. Therefore, in the following description, the image 200 a(range 130 a) obtained by capturing the floor slab region 100 a from thefront is used as the main image, and the image 200 b (range 130 b)obtained by capturing the floor slab region 100 a diagonally from theleft is used as the sub image. However, as image processing, any imagemay be used as the main image as long as the floor slab region to beprocessed appears in the image.

FIG. 8 is a view exemplarily showing GUIs for accepting a designation ofa replacement region from the user. These GUIs are displayed by thereplacement region designation module 304 performing display control ofa display unit such as the display 323. A GUI 801 is a GUI that arrangesand displays the main image (image 200 a) and the sub image (image 200b). When a replacement region is designated in the main image via amouse cursor 810, a region corresponding to the replacement region issynchronously displayed in the sub image.

On the other hand, a GUI 802 is a GUI that superimposes and displays themain image and the sub image. Here, a state is shown in which the subimage is superimposed on the main image with a transparency of “80%”.Noted that the transparency of the sub image can be designated. Whenthere are a plurality of sub images, the sub image to be displayed maybe switchable. Further, the plurality of sub images having undergonetranslucent processing may be superimposed and displayed on the mainimage.

By configuring such GUIs, it is possible to intuitively know the regionin the sub image corresponding to the replacement region designated inthe main image. Note that each of the GUI 801 and the GUI 802 isprovided with buttons or the like for receiving an operation from theuser. For example, a button for selecting the main image, a pull-downlist for selecting the sub image, a button for starting designation of areplacement region on the main image, and a button for clipping a regionon the sub image corresponding to the replacement region are provided.

An image clipping module 305 is a functional unit that clips the imageof the region in the sub image corresponding to the replacement regiondesignated by the replacement region designation module 304. Forexample, the coordinates of the replacement region designated by thereplacement region designation module 304 are converted into coordinatesin the sub image using the coordinate conversion parameter derived bythe alignment module 303, and the image of the region corresponding tothe coordinates obtained by the conversion is clipped from the subimage.

The image synthesis module 306 is a functional unit that overwrites thereplacement region designated by the replacement region designationmodule 304 with the clipped image clipped by the image clipping module305 to generate a synthesized image. For example, it generates an imageobtained by superimposing and displaying the clipped image clipped fromthe sub image on the main image.

Note that misalignment can occur between the main image and the clippedimage due to various factors. Therefore, the clipped image may bedisplayed as an editable object image in a GUI, and editing (deformationsuch as scaling) of the clipped image may be accepted from the user viathe keyboard 325 and/or the mouse 324.

FIG. 9 is a view exemplarily showing a GUI for accepting modification ofthe synthesized image from the user. In a window 900, the clipped imageis superimposed and displayed as an editable object image on the mainimage. The user can perform a deformation operation such as scaling ormoving the clipped image via a mouse cursor 901.

The variation detection module 307 is a functional unit that performsvariation detection processing on the synthesized image generated by theimage synthesis module 306. Here, variation detection processing isprocessing of detecting a variation (a crack or the like) in an imageand recording the detected variation. For example, it displays thesynthesized image on the GUI, accepts the position of the crack from theuser by a trace operation using a mouse or the like, and recordsposition data representing the trace location or the traced locus ascrack data (variation data). Alternatively, a crack is automaticallydetected by image analysis processing using an algorithm such as machinelearning, and the detected location of the crack is recorded as crackdata. Note that, in order to facilitate processing, the crack data ispreferably recorded as vector data indicating the locus of the crack.

In this embodiment, the crack data can be used as independent graphicdata. For example, it is possible to provide a user interface capable ofswitching on/off the superimposed display of crack data on thesynthesized image. In this manner, by checking the synthesized imagewhile switching on/off the superimposed display, the user can moreeasily check correctness of the variation detection processing andperform supplementary work. In addition, the crack detection data isstored and, after a predetermined period has passed, superimposed anddisplayed on a synthesized image obtained by capturing the same floorslab of the same bridge. This makes it easy for the user to visuallycheck whether the crack has extended. At this time, it may be configuredthat superimposition of crack detection data can be switched on/off. Inparticular, according to this embodiment, a synthesized image in which aregion hidden by a shielding object has been complemented can be used asa target of variation detection processing, so that the variationdetection processing can be performed more easily. That is, acomplicated work is unnecessary, such as performing variation detectionprocessing on each of a plurality of images captured from differentcapturing positions and distinguishing overlapping portions andnon-overlapping portions from the results obtained from the plurality ofimages.

FIG. 11 is a view showing an example of a screen in which variationsdetected by the variation detection module 307 are superimposed anddisplayed on a synthesized image. In a window 1100, a synthesized imagerelated to a portion different from that shown in the window 900 isdisplayed. A bold line 1101 is a part (corresponding to one crack) ofcrack data on the floor slab 100 detected by the variation detectionmodule 307. In this manner, it is preferable that the crack data ishighlighted by a bold line, a broken line, or a colored line so that thecrack data can be easily identified and compared with a crack 1102appearing in the synthesized image.

<Operation of Image Processing Apparatus>

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the imageprocessing apparatus according to the first embodiment. Note that in thefollowing description, an example in which a captured image of the range130 a is used as a main image and a captured image of the range 130 b isused as a sub image will be described. More specifically, an examplewill be described in which a synthesized image is generated in which theimage region of the diagonal member in the image 200 a is replaced witha partial image of the floor slab that appears at a correspondingposition in the image 200 b.

In step S501, the alignment module 303 acquires a main image and one ormore sub images to be synthesized from the image data storage module301. For example, a captured image obtained by capturing the floor slabregion 100 a to be processed from the front (immediately below) is readout from the image data storage module 301 as a main image. Then, theimage data management module 302 is inquired of a captured imageobtained by capturing the floor slab region laterally adjacent to thefloor slab region 100 a from the front, and the corresponding capturedimage is read out from the image data storage module 301 as a sub image.Here, a captured image of the left adjacent floor slab region 100 bcaptured from the front is read out as a sub image.

In step S502, the alignment module 303 reads out the design drawing fromthe image data storage module 301. As has been described above, thedesign drawing is an orthographic projection view as viewed from belowthe bridge, and is, for example, an image as shown in FIG. 1.

In step S503, the alignment module 303 accepts an associationrelationship of the coordinates between the main image and the designdrawing from the user, and derives a homography matrix as a coordinateconversion parameter between the main image and the design drawing. Inaddition, an association relationship between the coordinates of the subimage and the design drawing is accepted from the user, and a homographymatrix as a coordinate conversion parameter between the sub image andthe design drawing is derived. Thus, it becomes possible to convert themain image and the sub image (the central projection image captured bythe camera) into an orthographic projection image (orthogonalconversion). In addition, as a result, the coordinate relationship isassociated between the main image and the sub image.

Here, the user associates four vertices, serving as feature points, ofthe four corners of the floor slab region 100 a in the image 200 a withfour vertices, serving as feature points, of the four corners of thefloor slab region 100 a on the design drawing. In addition, fourvertices of the floor slab region 100 a in the image 200 b areassociated with the four vertices of the four corners of the floor slabregion 100 a on the design drawing. However, it is expected that the twoleft vertices in the image 200 b are shielded by the steel bridgegirder. Therefore, it is preferable to designate two vertices with thisin mind. For example, instead of the four corners of the floor slabregion 100 a, corners of the bridge girder that is assumed to exist onsubstantially the same plane as the floor slab region may be designated.Also, for example, the positions of the hidden two vertices behind thebridge girder on the image may be specified by drawing an auxiliary linebased on the remaining two viewable vertices, the corners of the bridgegirder, and the like, and the specified points may be designated. Afeature point other than the vertex may be designated, if any. Note thatthe feature point desirably exists on substantially the same plane asthe floor slab.

In step S504, the replacement region designation module 304 accepts adesignation of a replacement region in the main image from the user. Ashas been described above, a replacement region is a region in which thefloor slab is shielded so it does not appear in the main image. Here,the region of the diagonal member in the image 200 a is designated. Notethat a region larger than the region of the diagonal member may bedesignated, assuming that image edition may be required after synthesisis performed. Instead of directly designating the replacement region, adesignation of an image feature (texture or the like) of the replacementregion may be accepted. In this case, the replacement region designationmodule 304 selects a region in the main image similar to the designatedimage feature and designates the region as the replacement region.

In step S505, the image clipping module 305 clips the image of theregion in the sub image corresponding to the replacement region (givenregion) designated in step S504. Here, the coordinates of thereplacement region in the main image are converted into coordinates inthe sub image using the coordinate conversion parameters derived by thealignment module 303, and the image of the clipped region correspondingto the coordinates obtained by the conversion is clipped from the subimage. Note that a region larger than the clipped region derived fromthe replacement region may be clipped, assuming that image edition maybe required after synthesis is performed. However, if it is determinedbased on the image feature or the like that a portion other than thefloor slab appears in the extended region, this region may be excludedfrom the clipping target.

In step S506, the image synthesis module 306 overwrites (replaces) thereplacement region in the main image designated in step S504 with theclipped image clipped in step S505 to generate a synthesized image. Notethat when the clipped image is synthesized with the main image, theclipped image is converted into a coordinate position in the main imagebased on the homography matrix derived in step S503, and then synthesisis performed. The generated synthesized image is held in the image datastorage module 301.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of applying variationdetection processing to a synthesized image obtained by synthesizing aclipped image with a main image. In step S1201, the variation detectionmodule 307 acquires a synthesized image to be a target of variationdetection from the image data storage module 301. In S1202, thevariation detection module 307 applies variation detection processing tothe synthesized image acquired in step S1201. In this embodiment, thevariation detection module 307 automatically detects a crack from animage using machine learning, and records the detected location as crackdata.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining generation of a synthesized image bysuperimposing a clipped image on a main image. As shown in FIG. 6, agenerated synthesized image 600 includes a floor slab image includingthe entire target floor slab region. Of course, this is not the casewhen there is a partial region that appears in neither the main imagenor the sub image. In such a case, it is possible to generate onesynthetized image that includes the larger range of the target floorslab region by synthesis processing using one or more images capturedfrom further different viewpoints, and use the synthesized image as atarget of variation detection processing. Note that as has beendescribed above, in order to make it possible to correct the positionalshift between the main image and the clipped image, the clipped imagemay be displayed as an editable object image and a deformation operationsuch as scaling may be accepted from the user.

As has been described above, according to the first embodiment, imagescaptured from two different viewpoint positions are synthesized. Withthis processing, it becomes possible to generate an image suitable forvariation detection processing even in a situation in which an obstacle(diagonal member) exists between the inspection object (floor slab) andthe camera.

Note that in the above description, a mode in which one sub image isused for one main image has been described, but two or more sub imagesmay be used. For example, in addition to the captured image (image 200b) obtained by capturing the left adjacent floor slab region from thefront, a captured image obtained by capturing the right adjacent floorslab region from the front may also be used as the sub image.

(Modification 1)

In modification 1, a mode in which a plurality of images captured from aplurality of viewpoint positions are directly associated with each otherwill be described. Note that the apparatus arrangement is substantiallythe same as that in the first embodiment, so that a description thereofwill be omitted.

<Operation of Image Processing Apparatus>

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the imageprocessing apparatus according to modification 1. Note that in thefollowing description, as in the first embodiment, an example in which acaptured image of the range 130 a is used as a main image and a capturedimage of the range 130 b is used as a sub image will be described.

In step S701, the alignment module 303 reads out a main image and one ormore sub images to be synthesized from the image data storage module301. In step S702, the alignment module 303 accepts an associationrelationship of the coordinates between the main image and the sub imagefrom the user, and derives a homography matrix as a coordinateconversion parameter between the images.

Here, the user associates four vertices of the four corners of the floorslab region 100 a in the image 200 a with four vertices of the fourcorners of the floor slab region 100 a in the image 200 b. However, itis expected that the two left vertices in the image 200 b are shieldedby the steel bridge girder. Therefore, it is preferable to designate twovertices with this in mind. A feature point other than the vertex may bedesignated, if any. Note that the feature point desirably exists onsubstantially the same plane as the floor slab.

Steps S703 to S705 are similar to steps S504 to S506 in the firstembodiment, so that a description thereof will be omitted.

As has been described above, according to modification 1, it becomespossible to synthesize captured images captured from two differentviewpoint positions without using the design drawing. With thisprocessing, it becomes possible to generate an image suitable forvariation detection processing even in a situation in which an obstacle(diagonal member) exists between the inspection object (floor slab) andthe camera.

(Modification 2)

In the first embodiment, when a positional shift occurs between the mainimage and the image clipped from the sub image, the user can performedition such as scaling or moving using the GUI as shown in FIG. 9.However, the shift between the main image and the clipped image cannotalways be compensated for only by edition by scaling or moving. Inmodification 2, there will be described processing of correcting apositional shift of a variation or texture occurring in a boundaryportion when a clipped image is superimposed and displayed on a mainimage (and when they are synthesized) according to the first embodimentor modification 1.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing the functional arrangement of theimage processing apparatus 300. Regarding the functional arrangement,the description of parts similar to those in the first embodiment willbe omitted. A clipped image correction module 1301 is a functional unitthat applies image processing to a clipped image in order to correct ashift of a variation, texture, or color in a boundary portion betweenthe main image and the clipped image.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining an example of the operation of theimage processing apparatus according to modification 2. This processingis performed as preprocessing of the image synthesis processing shown inFIG. 5 (step S506) or FIG. 7 (step S705). Alternatively, the processingis performed as processing of optimizing a synthesized image to beprocessed in variation detection processing shown in FIG. 12 (stepS1202). Note that in the following description, as in the firstembodiment, an example in which a captured image of the range 130 a isused as a main image and a captured image of the range 130 b is used asa sub image will be described.

In step S1401, the variation detection module 307 performs crackdetection processing on a main image and a clipped image. FIG. 15A is aview showing a state in which the clipped image is superimposed on themain image. Cracks 1503 are detected in each of a main image 1501 and aclipped image 1502. In step S1402, the clipped image correction module1301 acquires end points of the cracks on the boundary of a regiondesignated by the replacement region designation module 304. FIG. 15B isa view showing a state in which the end points of the cracks on theboundary between the main image 1501 and the clipped image 1502 arespecified. Here, eight specified end points are indicated by dots. Instep S1403, the clipped image correction module 1301 creates pairs ofthe end point of the crack in the main image and the end point of thecrack in the clipped image acquired in step S1402 so that the end pointsfalling within a predetermined range are paired. FIG. 15C is a viewshowing a state in which the end point of the crack on the main image1501 and the end point of the crack on the clipped image 1502 arepaired. Here, each pair of two end points is surrounded by a circle 1504indicated by dotted line, and a state in which four pairs are set isshown. In step S1404, the clipped image correction module 1301determines whether there are four or more pairs each including the endpoint of the crack in the main image and the end point of the crack inthe clipped image. If the number of pairs is less than four, the processadvances to step S1405. If the number of pairs is four or more, theprocess advances to step S1406.

In step S1405, the clipped image correction module 1301 accepts theassociation relationship of the coordinates between the clipped imageand the main image from the user, and creates a pair from the two inputcoordinates. This is processing of replenishing a pair so that geometricconversion to be described later can be executed based on a total offour or more pairs. For example, a pair of coordinates determined by thealignment module 303 and associated with each other to align the mainimage and the sub image (step S503 or S702) may be used. Alternatively,a pair of coordinates associated by the user newly selecting anarbitrary position in each of the main image and the clipped image maybe used. Note that the coordinates designated on the clipped image aredesirably coordinates on a region where the user wants to suppress theinfluence of conversion in geometric conversion of the clipped imageperformed in step S1406 to be described later. Also, even when four ormore pairs have been generated in step S1403, a user input of a pair maybe accepted for the purpose of designating a region where the user wantsto suppress the influence of conversion. Note that it is determined herewhether the number of pairs is “four or more” in step S1403, assuminggeometric conversion using a homography matrix. However, when anothergeometric conversion is used, the number may be any number necessary forthe geometric conversion, and may not be “four or more”.

In step S1406, the clipped image correction module 1301 derives ahomography matrix using the pairs of the coordinates on the main imageand the coordinates on the clipped image. Then, geometric conversionbased on the derived homography matrix is applied to the clipped image.FIG. 15D is a view showing a state in which the clipped image with thegeometric conversion applied thereto is superimposed and displayed onthe main image in step S1406. The clipped image geometrically convertedas described above is, for example, overwritten on the synthesizedimage, and can be used in variation detection processing. In addition,for example, it is possible to provide a user interface capable ofsuperimposing and displaying the geometrically-converted clipped imageon the synthesized image or switching on/off the superimposed display.For example, the clipped image superimposed on the synthesized image (orthe main image) may be displayed as an editable object image, and thepositional shift may be further corrected by accepting a deformationoperation such as scaling from the user.

Note that in the boundary portion between a main image and a clippedimage, not only a positional shift of a variation or texture but also ashift of color (color shift) may occur. Two methods of correcting acolor shift in the boundary portion will be described below. One is amethod using histogram matching that matches the distribution of thecolor histogram of the clipped image with the distribution of the colorhistogram of the main image. The other is a method of blending theclipped image with the main image by setting the transparencycontinuously changed from the center to the outside in the vicinity ofthe boundary portion of the clipped image.

FIGS. 16A to 16D are views showing a method of blending the boundaryportion between a main image and a clipped image. Each of FIGS. 16A to16D includes schematic views showing the positional relationship betweenthe main image and the clipped image when viewed from the side and whenviewed from above. FIG. 16A is a view showing a state in which a clippedimage 1603 is superimposed on a diagonal member region 1602 (that is, areplacement region) appearing in a main image 1601. An image 1611exemplarily shows occurrence of a color shift in the boundary portion.

FIG. 16B is a view showing a state in which the transparency of thecenter portion of the clipped image is set to 0% and continuouslychanged to 100% toward the outer boundary portion. Note that in thiscase, the transparency at the edge of the clipped image is set to 100%.Accordingly, when the width of the clipped image 1603 and the width ofthe diagonal member region 1602 are substantially the same, the diagonalmember region 1602 appearing in the main image 1601 is seen through theclipped image 1603. An image 1612 exemplarily shows a state in which thediagonal member region 1602 is seen through the clipped image 1603.Therefore, when clipping the clipped image 1603 from the sub image, itis preferable to clip a region larger than the range of the diagonalmember region 1602. By setting the transparency continuously changedfrom 0% to 100% with respect to such the clipped image 1603, theblending can be performed without allowing the diagonal material to beseen through the clipped image 1603.

FIG. 16C is a view showing a state in which the clipped image 1603including a peripheral region 1604 is clipped when an image region inthe sub image corresponding to the replacement region is clipped. Thatis, FIG. 16C shows a state in which an extended partial region largerthan the replacement region is clipped. An image 1613 exemplarily showsoccurrence of a color shift in the boundary portion between theperipheral region 1604 and the main image in this case. FIG. 16D is aview showing a state in which the transparency of a portioncorresponding to the diagonal member region 1602 (that is, thereplacement region) is set to 0% and the transparency of the peripheralregion 1604 is changed in the larger clipped image (extended partialregion). Here, an example is shown in which the transparency of theperipheral region 1604 is continuously changed from 0% to 100% from theside in contact with the clipped image 1603 to the outside (toward theboundary with the main image). An image 1614 exemplarily shows a statein which the color shift in the boundary portion is not noticeable dueto this processing.

If a positional shift of a variation or texture or a color shift occursin the boundary portion between the main image and the clipped image,false detection such as miscounting of the number of cracks or regardingthe boundary line as a crack may occur in variation detectionprocessing. According to modification 2, occurrence of such falsedetection can be reduced. Note that in modification 2, a method ofcorrecting a positional shift and a method of correcting a color shifthave been described, but image processing is not limited thereto.Similarly, based on any or all of the hue, the saturation, and thebrightness in one of a main image and a sub image, any of the hue, thesaturation, and the brightness of a partial region in the other imagecan be adjusted and reflected on a synthesized image. This can improvethe accuracy of variation detection processing that is executedsubsequently.

According to the present invention, a technique of generating an imagewhich enables more suitable detection of variations can be provided.Other features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the description with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

(Other Embodiments)

Embodiment(s) of the present invention can also be realized by acomputer of a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computerexecutable instructions (e.g., one or more programs) recorded on astorage medium (which may also be referred to more fully asanon-transitory computer-readable storage medium') to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s) and/orthat includes one or more circuits (e.g., application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC)) for performing the functions of one or moreof the above-described embodiment(s), and by a method performed by thecomputer of the system or apparatus by, for example, reading out andexecuting the computer executable instructions from the storage mediumto perform the functions of one or more of the above-describedembodiment(s) and/or controlling the one or more circuits to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s). Thecomputer may comprise one or more processors (e.g., central processingunit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU)) and may include a network ofseparate computers or separate processors to read out and execute thecomputer executable instructions. The computer executable instructionsmay be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or thestorage medium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or moreof a hard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM),a storage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

While the present invention has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of thefollowing claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as toencompass all such modifications and equivalent structures andfunctions.

1. An image processing apparatus comprising: one or more processors; andone or more memories including instructions that, when executed by theone or more processors, cause the communication apparatus to perform amethod comprising: acquiring a first image which captures a sceneincluding an object from a first viewpoint position and a second imagewhich captures a scene including the object from a second viewpointposition different from the first viewpoint position; associating acoordinate position corresponding to a position of a feature of theobject on the first image with a coordinate position corresponding to aposition of a feature of the object on the second image; determining apartial region in the second image corresponding to a give region in thefirst image based on the association; generating a synthesized image byreplacing an image of the given region in the first image using an imageof the determined partial region; and displaying variation datarepresenting a variation that has occurred in the object bysuperimposing the variation data on the generated synthesized image. 2.The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, the method furthercomprising detecting a variation that has occurred in the object basedon analysis of the synthesized image, wherein, in the displaying, thecommunication apparatus displays the variation data representing thedetected variation by superimposing the variation data on thesynthesized image.
 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim1, wherein the communication apparatus further acquires a design drawingof the object, and the communication apparatus associates the coordinateposition corresponding to the position of the feature of the object onthe first image with a coordinate position corresponding to a positionof the feature of the object on the design drawing, and associates thecoordinate position corresponding to the position of the feature of theobject on the second image with the coordinate position corresponding tothe position of the feature of the object on the design drawing.
 4. Theimage processing apparatus according to claim 1, the method furthercomprising designating the give region in the first image.
 5. The imageprocessing apparatus according to claim 4, the method further comprisingaccepting a designation of a region of an arbitrary shape in the firstimage from a user, wherein the communication apparatus designates theregion of the arbitrary shape as the given region.
 6. The imageprocessing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the communicationapparatus is configured to be capable of accepting a plurality ofregions of an arbitrary shape, and the communication apparatusdesignates, as the given image, a region obtained by a logical sum or alogical product of the plurality of regions of the arbitrary shape. 7.The image processing apparatus according to claim 4, the method furthercomprising accepting a designation of an image feature from a user,wherein the communication apparatus designates a region in the firstimage similar to the image feature as the given region.
 8. The imageprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, the method further comprisingarranging and displaying the first image and the second image on adisplay unit, wherein the communication apparatus performs control so asto display, synchronously with the give region, the determined partialregion in the second image.
 9. The image processing apparatus accordingto claim 1, the method further comprising superimposing and displayingthe second image having undergone translucent processing on the firstimage in a display unit, wherein the communication apparatus performscontrol so as to superimpose and display the second image havingundergone the translucent processing on the first image based on theassociation.
 10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 9,the method further comprising designating a transparency in thetranslucent processing.
 11. The image processing apparatus according toclaim 1, the method further comprising performing image processing forcorrecting a shift occurring between the partial region and the firstimage in the synthesized image.
 12. The image processing apparatusaccording to claim 11, wherein the communication apparatus corrects apositional shift occurring between the partial region and the firstimage by deforming the image of the partial region based on anassociation relationship between coordinates specified from a boundaryof the give region and coordinates specified from a boundary of thepartial region.
 13. The image processing apparatus according to claim12, wherein the variation that has occurred in the object is a crackthat has occurred in a structure, and the communication apparatusspecifies an end point of a crack detected from the first image on theboundary of the given region and an endpoint of a crack detected fromthe second image on the boundary of the partial region, and deforms thepartial region based on association of the end points falling within apredetermined range among the specified end points.
 14. The imageprocessing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the communicationapparatus corrects a color shift occurring between the partial regionand the first image by adjusting any or all of a hue, a saturation, anda brightness of the partial region based on any or all of a hue, asaturation, and a brightness of the first image.
 15. The imageprocessing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the communicationapparatus corrects a color shift occurring between the partial regionand the first image by adjusting any or all of a hue, a saturation, anda brightness of the first image based on any or all of a hue, asaturation, and a brightness of the partial region.
 16. The imageprocessing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the communicationapparatus generates the synthesized image by superimposing, on the givenregion in the first image, the image of the partial region whosetransparency is set, and the communication apparatus corrects a colorshift occurring between the partial region and the first image bysetting the transparency that continuously increases from a center to anoutside in the partial region.
 17. The image processing apparatusaccording to claim 16, wherein the communication apparatus generates thesynthesized image by superimposing an image of an extended partialregion larger than the determined partial region on the given region inthe first image, and the communication apparatus corrects a color shiftoccurring between the partial region and the first image by setting, ina region of the extended partial region extending from the partialregion, a transparency that continuously increases from a side incontact with the partial region to an outside of the extended partialregion.
 18. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, themethod further comprising deriving, based on the association, acoordinate conversion parameter that mutually converts a coordinateposition in the object included in the first image and a coordinateposition in the object included in the second image, wherein thecommunication apparatus determines, based on the coordinate conversionparameter, the partial region in the second image corresponding to thegiven region in the first image.
 19. A control method in an imageprocessing apparatus, comprising: acquiring a first image which capturesa scene including an object from a first viewpoint position and a secondimage which captures a scene including the object from a secondviewpoint position different from the first viewpoint position;associating a coordinate position corresponding to a position of afeature of the object on the first image with a coordinate positioncorresponding to a position of a feature of the object on the secondimage; determining a partial region in the second image corresponding toa give region in the first image based on the association; generating asynthesized image by replacing an image of the given region in the firstimage using an image of the determined partial region; and displayingvariation data representing a variation that has occurred in the objectby superimposing the variation data on the synthesized image.
 20. Anon-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a program forcausing a computer to function as an image processing apparatuscomprising: an acquisition unit configured to acquire a first imagewhich captures a scene including an object from a first viewpointposition and a second image which captures a scene including the objectfrom a second viewpoint position different from the first viewpointposition; an association unit configured to associate a coordinateposition corresponding to a position of a feature of the object on thefirst image with a coordinate position corresponding to a position of afeature of the object on the second image; a determination unitconfigured to determine a partial region in the second imagecorresponding to a give region in the first image based on theassociation by the association unit; a generation unit configured togenerate a synthesized image by replacing an image of the given regionin the first image using an image of the partial region determined bythe determination unit; and a display control unit configured to displayvariation data representing a variation that has occurred in the objectby superimposing the variation data on the synthesized image generatedby the generation unit.